The newly appointed Commander of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), Mohammad Ali Jafari, announced in his first press conference that the IRGC would use “asymmetric warfare” methods to face enemy threats. Jafari made the announcement despite President Ahmadinejad’s insistence that Iran will not be attacked.

While accepting Iran’s handicaps in research and development, the Pasddaran commander said, “Since the enemy has financial and technological advantages over us, we have to choose appropriate policies and defense methods, such as asymmetric warfare. An instance of such warfare is the 33 day Lebanon war.”

Asymmetric warfare is launched against an enemy in one’s own territory and centers around commando-style attacks rather than classical warfare. The method is used not by armies, but by armed groups and militias.

Jafari also noted that the reason for Safavi’s removal was his long tenure, which induced supreme leader Khamenei to inject fresh blood into the Guards by appointing a younger commander: “Such measures are normal all over the world. Commander Safavi served in this post for ten years, and usually people’s energy falls over ten years and thus such measures becomes necessary. This decision was made months ago and is not related to the enemy’s recent remarks.”

Jafari dismissed enemy threats even though a major portion of his first press conference was spent on explaining the IRGC’s preparation for such an attack. Jafari also noted that the supreme leader’s main requirement was to increase the “cohesion” and “strength” of the Guards.

Jafari said, “We must be flexible to confront any threat. The IRGC’s goal is to increase its resilience against enemies of Iran and the Islamic Revolution, and also to strengthen the country’s might and ability to deal with threats in order to prevent the enemy from acting against the country and the regime.”

Along with the appointment of Commander Zolghadr as Vice Interior Minister and Commander Afshar as deputy Interior Minister in political affairs, the recent shuffling points to Iran’s preparations for a possible military attack.

In his remarks, Jafari admitted that “The enemy has intensified its threats, but it must know that an organization like the IRGC, which is revolutionary and backed by people, cannot be destroyed. The enemy must think twice about its threats. As long as the IRGC exists, a strong fort will defend Iran and the Islamic Revolution…. In addition to its high military capability, the IRGC has intelligence about the enemy as well as advanced missile capabilities, which will aid it a great deal in defending [the nation].”